MANDY BURFORD INTERVIEW

CASEY DUNN INTERVIEW

PHOTO GALLERY

BIRMINGHAM, Ala.—The Samford athletics department dedicated the new J.T. Haywood Field House for baseball and softball with a ceremony Friday night inside the facility.

"What an awesome place," Samford head baseball coach Casey Dunn said. "What an opportunity for our student-athletes to have a place to train, and to hang out and socialize with each other at the same time. This is a special place and a special night tonight honoring Coach Haywood."

The J.T. Haywood Field House honors the long-time Samford University faculty member and former coach. It is located between baseball's Joe Lee Griffin Field and the new Samford Softball Stadium.

"We are extremely blessed and lucky to be able to play in a place like this, and to have this to call home," Samford head softball coach Mandy Burford said. "You're not going to find a better place around, and you're not going to find people that care about you more than our athletic department and Coach Haywood, and everybody at Samford does.

"I'd like to give a special thank you to Mr. Larry Long for everything he did to get this night together and to build this amazing facility," Burford said.

The new building includes indoor hitting facilities, two locker rooms, coaches' offices and storage for baseball and softball. The facility features three hitting and two pitching lanes for both teams to utilize.

The Haywood Field House is part of a larger project that includes a 200-seat softball stadium, reorientation of the current softball field and a new press tower with concessions and restrooms.